Dehradun, April 21 -- Bill Sa'ab.

Barely had his ashes cooled when the partition was smashed in the house where William Mackay Aitken, fondly known as Bill Aitken or 'Bill Sa'ab!', had spent fifty-three years of his life. After all, property is so prized in the station nowadays that legal niceties are easily forgotten.

My youngest daughter, Tania, a media fiend, broke the sad news of his passing. My thoughts gravitated to the day when I first met him. We were gathered for a friend's birthday, back when birthdays were no big deal. Just a few friends, gathered for a piece of cake, chips and chai.

'Wouldn't some music be nice?' suggested Rajmata Prithvi Bir Kaur of Jind. Off went Bill up Palpitation Hill in Bala Hisar to Oakless Cottage t...